Chirps from Center Ice

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Wilkes-Barre / Scranton has a consistency problem.

Explain to me how they get a pair of shorthanded and power play goals in Hartford, a competitive team, and then come to Providence, a team in seventh place and lose 5-0.

I think it’s a consistency problem. Players get too high into their heads and think they are gods gift to the AHL. But that’s just the thing, it’s the AHL. Things change, often. Your best yesterday isn’t going to measure up on most nights the next day.

Maybe Todd Nelson in Hershey is onto something. Every day might be the Super Bowl.

I started to write the Weekend Preview during the third period of this game, and the Penguins have Charlotte in for a pair this week and Springfield, probably the hottest team in the Conference right now. All teams have 25 points. But that’s for Wednesday…

Here’s how they lined up….

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Lineup Notes: Corey Andonovski returned from injury and Marc Johnstone were back in the lineup for Emil Bemström and Raivis Ansons up front. Bemstrom and Ansons are day to day with upper body injuries. I recall seeing Bemstrom crash hard in front of the net in Hartford, but he shook it off and continued. Isaac Belliveau was in for Jack St. Ivany who was listed as week to week with an upper body injury.

So just as they were starting to get healthy-ish, they lose three guys to injury.

First Period: So Providence was playing in their third game in as many nights and started this four and a half hours away in Utica, NY. You wouldn’t know it after watching the first period.

The Bruins outshot the Penguins 17-3 in the period and took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission when a Vinnie Letteri shot was tipped in by Georgii Merkulov.

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On top of that, Mac Hollowell may have been lost to injury as well.

Second Period: So they were only down 1-0 to start the period, manageable, have been there before, but the bottom fell out.

Penguins had a power play, but Jeff Viel steals a puck, dances in and scores shorthanded to make it 2-0 Providence.

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Wilkes-Barre were getting some looks, but Brandon Bussi was getting some lucky bounces and making the saves.

Bruins get a power play and seconds in, a shot from the point by Vinni Letteri hits the low post and dinks in to make it a triple for the Bruins.

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Matthew Poitras would make it 4-0 here…

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I don’t want to pick on the guy and I may be ranting ere, but I feel like the wrong guy is in Wheeling. Sure, the Penguins did Filip Larsson no favors by letting Providence outshoot them 17-3 in the first period, but it was a 1-0 deficit. To give up a shorthanded goal, a fluke goal and then a shot that you probably could make a save on doesn’t seem great.

Does Blomqvist make those saves? Does Sergei Murashov? I have no idea. But if hockey is a team effort they all needed to be better and you could say the same about the goaltender.

Third Period: Kirk MacDonald tried something unorthodox and pulled Larsson for an extra man when the Penguins had essentially a 6 on 3. It didn’t work, but I like the innovation.

Penguins, down four, gave the Bruins a pair of back to back power plays and the Bruins connect when Brett Harrison scores to make it five.

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The Penguins may have lost Nikolai Knyzhov late to an injury when he was banged hard near the Penguins game late. With the game a blowout and under two minutes, he didn’t return.

Three Stars: 3) Matthew Poitras (goal, assist) 2) Brandon Bussi (21 saves) 1) Vinni Letteri

The Good: If you can’t say something nice….

The Bad: …don’t say anything at all.

Turning Point: I think the goal that went off the post in the second that made it 3-0 should get it here. Perhaps the Viel shorthanded goal. Take your pick.

Around the Division: One other game, Hershey hosting Lehigh Valley, but that starts late on these Sundays and is still in action as this is going up. Box here.

Standings: I don’t know if I will be back around for an edit later, so the Penguins will stay in second place, for now, with 25 points. A three way tie with the Checkers and a suddenly surging Springfield Thunderbirds team. Wednesday’s matchup with the Checkers looms large.

Wheeling Update: Nailers started an hour later than the Penguins, hosting the Reading Royals. If Wilkes-Barre is indeed seriously banged up, look for some recalls from the Nailers this week. Box on that Nailers / Royals game is here.

Video Highlights: Hard pass on the search for this one.

Power Rankings Monday, Weekend Preview setting up the pair with the Checkers and Thunderbirds this Wednesday. Talk to you then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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After getting pasted by their blood rival and the reigning back-to-back Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears on Wednesday, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins complete a masterclass of a game on all sides of strategy and win 6-2 in Hartford Saturday night.

They scored a pair of power play goals and two shorthanded goals. Now yeah, one of them was on an empty net, but the fact remains that the special teams was on point, and it feels good to be on the winning side of a game where special teams carries the day.

Here’s how they lined up…

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Hartford didn’t and doesn’t post lines.

Lineup Notes: Raivis Ansons in for Marc Johnstone up front. No changes on defense.

Wheeling Transactions: Justin Lee was sent down to the Nailers and G Jaxon Castor was called up and signed to a PTO. The ECHL has weird roster rules. Castor is here kind of in storage, there’s no injury to any goaltenders, just the Nailers needed to make a move and that was the move.

Don’t ask me to explain ECHL roster rules.

First Period: Penguins had a sluggish start Wednesday at home against the Hershey Bears, but that was not the case at all in the first period in Hartford.

Valtteri Puustinen scored a pair of power play goals and Joona Koppanen scored with. :14 left after a shot from Nikolai Knyzhov was blocked, rebound back to him, shot again and tipped in by Koppanen.

Here’s the goals…

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Tristan Broz is the Penguins best player right now. Go back and watch that second goal and that touch Broz had on the pass to Puustinen for the goal.

Shots were 12-8 for the Penguins heading into the…

Second Period: Hartford would find the back of the net and the teddy bears would fly as it was their Teddy Bear Toss night. Bryce McConnell-Barker would score and the fur flew.

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After the short break to clean up the teddy bears, the Penguins would score their third period play goal of the evening when Vasily Ponomarev would score that made it 4-1.

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Nice hand / eye coordination there.

Then Hartford would find t themselves on 1:50 of two man advantage time and they would connect for a goal when Jake Leschyshyn scored to cut the Penguins lead in half.

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Wolf Pack would outshoot the Penguins 11-5 in the period. The Penguins, despite scoring a power play goal in the period, were a bit on their heels in that frame.

Third Period: Hartford had a golden opportunity to get back into the game when ex-Wolf Packer Mac Hollowell was called for a double minor for roughing. Hartford power play.

Here comes Vasily Ponomarev…

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And off the rush as well. They were dogged on the puck all night, especially on the special teams.

The Penguins had a power play late but couldn’t score.

Hartford had desperation set in and were on the power play late but Ponomarev scored on the empty net left by Louis Domingue and scored his hat trick.

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Seems like a cheap way to get the second shorthanded goal of the night as well as a hat trick, but as I stated at the top, it’s a good feeling being in the winning side of a game like this.

Three Stars: 3) Filip Kral (three assists) 2) Valtteri Puustinen (two goals, assist) 1) Vasily Ponomarev (three goals, assist)

The Good: Just a complete domination on special teams for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins Saturday, getting four goals.

The Bad: I didn’t particularly like their second period effort, but the special teams get them across the line Saturday and that’s all that matters.

Turning Point: Ponomarev’s first shorthanded goal in the third period iced this for the. Penguins. If the Wolf Pack score to make it 4-3, it’s a different ballgame and the momentum begins to shift. It didn’t happen thanks to the Penguins aggressiveness on the puck while down a man.

Around the Division: Providence beats Bridgeport 6-3….Springfield beats Rockford 2-1….Rochester shuts out Charlotte 3-0….Hershey and Lehigh Valley went to overtime and a Chase Priskie goal gives the Bears a win with :21 left to play and a 3-2 win for the Bears.

Standings: Hershey 35 – Penguins Thunderbirds and Checkers 25 – Hartford and Lehigh Valley 23 – Providence 22 – Bridgeport 14

Wheeling Update: Nailers score their tenth win in a row with a 3-0 win Saturday afternoon in Cincinnati. Taylor Gauthier stopped 17 shots, Jagger Joshua had a goal as well as Justin Lee, fresh off his reassignment and Matty De St. Phalle. The Nailers return home to host the Reading Royals at 4:10 on Sunday.

Video Highlights: I still don’t see them and if they have to catch a bus to Providence, I doubt they will be up any time soon.

Back at it Sunday at 3 in Providence. More then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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I don’t know what was worse, tonight’s 6-1 throttling at the hands (paws?) of the Hershey Bears or the roads home.

Either way, a quick one here on a Wednesday work night.

Bears head coach Todd Nelson challenged his team after Saturday’s loss to the Penguins. He called the Bears “entitled” after winning back to back Calder Cups.

I thought about this long and hard Wednesday. Would you want to play for a guy where every day is the Super Bowl? Or is it hard to please such a demanding man to the point where your best may not be his best? I don’t know, it’s a tough spot.

Regardless, the back to back Calder Cup Champs responded in kind and handled business on the road in Wilkes-Barre.

I’m not going to clip in each of the Bears goals.

Here’s how they lined up. Mind the embed issues. I am told sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.

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Lineup Notes: In addition to Jagger Joshua being assigned to Wheeling, Sergei Murashov went with him. It’s an embarrassment of riches for the Penguins that the guy that beat the Bears on Saturday was in a car headed west to Wheeling. Tough league. March Johnstone replaced Joshua up front and Jack St. Ivany took the place of Isaac Belliveau on defense.

First Period: Penguins get outworked on the first Bears goal, they leave a guy that always seems to score on them for a second goal and a tic tac toe play ends up in their net for the third goal.

They went Ethan Bear, Pierrick Dube and Bogdan Trineyev in that order.

Two of those goals were scored in the final minute which has to be unacceptable.

Second Period: Hoping to get back into the game, the Penguins put a firing squad in front of Hunter Shepard but Shepard had a blindfold and a good cigarette because he was cool as a cucumber and turned them all away.

The Penguins would lose a board battle and the Bears would score another to make it 4-0 (Henrik Rybinski) then a shot changes speed / direction on Joel Blomqvist and Alex Limoges gets credit for it and it’s 5-0, and the very next shift :16 later Boris Katchouk would score to get the Penguins on the board.

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But then an Ethen Frank snipe made it 6-1, again a goal by the opposition in the period’s final minute.

Third Period: Filip Larsson would replace Joel Blomqvist and allow no shots, the Penguins would score no goals and it would end up a 6-1 final.

Three Stars: 3) Hunter Shepard (29 saves) 2) Ethen Frank (goal, assist) 1) Henrik Rybinski (goal, two assists)

The Good: I slid down a hill, almost put my truck sideways and into a ditch but made it out straight, slower and OK and home in one piece.

The Bad: Nights like these make me miss summer.

Turning Point: The Frank goal that made it 6-1 proved that even if the Penguins scored again, Hershey wasn’t backing down.

Around the Division: Lehigh Valley loses 7-3 at home to Rockford…. Hartford wins 6-1 in Bridgeport. The rest of them had the Wednesday off.

Standings: Hershey 33 – Penguins 23 – Charlotte 23 – Lehigh Valley 22 – Springfield 21 – Hartford 21 – Providence 18 – Bridgeport 13

Things are tight, yes, but the Penguins have six games in hand on Hershey and three on everyone else but for Charlotte who have the same games played (17) and. four on Bridgeport.

Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.

Video Highlights: Doubt anyone would want to relive this abomination.

Back at it Saturday in Hartford. More then.

Let’s Go Pens!